How can businesses improve employee well-being without sacrificing profits?

That will be the topic of conversation Friday evening as faculty experts from the 天美影视传媒 Foster School of Business share their perspectives and research in a series of short talks:

The speakers are , associate professor of management; , assistant professor of management and organization; , professor of marketing; , associate professor of management; and , the inaugural Dean鈥檚 Impact Scholar at the Foster School and vice president and global head of inclusion, diversity, equity and action at Lululemon.

Gupta studies topics related to business, politics and society. He will speak on the growing phenomenon of employee activism. Employees are increasingly speaking out against corporate employers for what they see as irresponsible behaviors, Gupta said, often risking their careers and livelihoods.

鈥淚 will describe the macro trends that have fueled the rise of employee activism, and the factors that explain why some activists are more successful than others,鈥� Gupta said. 鈥淭he goal is to share ideas that can unlock the full potential of employee activism to enhance corporate citizenship and social welfare.鈥�

Hafenbrack鈥檚 research centers around psychological processes that affect the workplace. He will speak on the benefits and drawbacks of meditation as a tool in the workplace, including how a small amount of meditation in specific situations can often change a person鈥檚 life for the better 鈥� but sometimes for the worse.

鈥淵ou just need to know the difference between when it is helpful and when it isn’t,鈥� Hafenbrack said. 鈥淚 will also explain why celebrities like Arianna Huffington, Phil Jackson and Deepak Chopra don’t like my research on meditation.鈥�

Schlosser鈥檚 talk will highlight how social media can influence the way consumers present themselves. Because computer-mediated communication allows speakers to remain anonymous and less aware of audience reactions, it would seem to allow people to be their true selves. But that hasn鈥檛 been the case, Schlosser said.

鈥淚n the over 25 years since social media sites were introduced, people continue to communicate information that seems acceptable and held by the majority,鈥� said Schlosser, who studies computer-mediated communication and internet marketing. 鈥淚鈥檒l also discuss implications for consumer well-being and the 鈥榮piral of silence.鈥欌��

Fehr, whose research focuses on building positive relationships at work, will discuss how a culture of gratitude is often missing from organizations, despite research that suggests gratitude can have a lasting effect on well-being, strength of relationships and success at work. His talk will examine the 鈥済ratitude gap鈥� 鈥� 聽the difference in the amount of gratitude people hope for at work and what actually transpires.

鈥淢y work focuses on helping employees build high-quality connections with each other,鈥� Fehr said. 鈥淓specially in a time of growing social division and virtual work, I argue that organizations must help employees forge high-quality relationships with each other if they are to succeed.鈥�

Jones, who has spent more than 20 years working with corporations on domestic and international matters of DEI, will talk about navigating the corporate DEI space as well as approaches organizations can take to create healthy, inclusive and equitable workplaces for individuals and society.

But gratitude can have a dark side; it can impel us to eat more sweets, according to new research by , professor of marketing at the 天美影视传媒 .

A research by Schlosser has been accepted by the Journal of Consumer Psychology. Its title is “.”

“Gratitude has sweet side effects,” Schlosser said. “This study finds evidence that feeling grateful for the helpful 鈥� or metaphorically ‘sweet’ 鈥� actions of others increases preference for and consumption of sweets.”

And the more we feel connected to others, the more tempted we are to indulge in sweet things when we’re in a state of appreciation.

Around the world, people use flavor classifications as easy metaphors for emotions. While salty, sour and bitter often evoke more negative connotations, sweet is almost universally associated with benefiting from the positive actions of another. Empathy. Generosity. Kindness.

But beyond the metaphorical connection, is there an actual connection between kindness and sweetness?

To find out, Schlosser designed a series of studies triggering feelings of gratitude and other emotions in participants, then measured their tendencies to select and consume sweet or savory indulgences, or nothing at all. Through different variations on this simple design, she found that gratitude elevates one’s preference for sweets.

It does not, however, increase consumption of other kinds of foods. In fact, gratitude actually decreased preference for sour, salty or bitter foods.

“Because gratitude involves acknowledging benefits received from the kind 鈥� or metaphorically sweet 鈥� actions of another, individuals may infer that they must be deserving of sweetness,” Schlosser said. “As a result, they prefer foods with a congruent sweet taste.”

The study also demonstrates that the positive feeling of pride does not yield the same yearning for sweets as gratitude does because it does not carry the same “sweet” associations.

Another finding of the study is that the effect of gratitude on sweet preferences is strongest for those who feel connected to others. When feeling psychologically separate, Schlosser said, people value independence and tend to view others individually. When feeling psychologically connected, people see more similarities between themselves and others and view people more interdependently.

“Psychologically-connected individuals are typically more accepting of help and more likely to see themselves as playing a role in the kind act,” Schlosser said. “When they feel gratitude, they feel like they deserve this kind act, this sweetness. Psychologically-separate individuals don鈥檛 make as strong a gratitude connection.”

The 聽have been well documented recently. Sugar is considered addictive, and its overconsumption contributes to obesity, high blood pressure, high cholesterol and a litany of other diseases and disorders.

“Increased sugar consumption causes many serious health consequences,” Schlosser said. “And prior research tells us that people are largely unaware of the factors that drive their consumption.”

Schlosser, an Evert McCabe Faculty Fellow in the Foster School, noted that holidays can be times of temptation for overdoing it on sweets, in part because they are both occasions for gratitude and times when people feel connected to others.

“These are times when gratitude is being expressed and we鈥檙e likely to be with a group and feeling especially interdependent,” Schlosser said. “Being conscious of how these occasions might make you more likely to overconsume 鈥� especially sweet foods 鈥� can help you resist at least some of the temptation.”

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For more information, contact Schlosser at 206-685-7497 or aschloss@uw.edu.